


Showing Up

by Bear_shark



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky and Steve too, Camping, Everything is Beautiful and Nothing Hurts, Kid Fic, M/M, Natasha is Bucky's daughter, Nightmares, POV Sam Wilson, Sam Wilson Needs a Hug, Sam Wilson is a father, Scouts, Steve Rogers Is a Good Bro, Trans Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-17
Updated: 2019-07-18
Packaged: 2020-06-30 09:46:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19850602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bear_shark/pseuds/Bear_shark
Summary: Sam, Bucky, and Steve lead their scout group on a weekend camping trip.  Shenanigans ensue.Or: Sam bonds with his son and realizes he has feelings for another troop leader.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Parrannnah](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Parrannnah/gifts).



> HAPPY BIRTHDAY, @kat-atomic! You are an incredible human/genius, and I'm grateful to have you in my life. 
> 
> Also, there's a tiny Williams Carlos Williams reference in here and kudos to you if you catch it!

“Imperfections are not inadequacies; they are reminders that we’re all in this together.”

\- Brene Brown-

The rain sounds tympany drums on the taut tent, the only beautiful part of an otherwise dismal morning. 

“Bucky,” Sam calls out over the sound of the rain. 

“What?” 

“We’ve got to get the kids up.” 

Bucky makes a groaning noise barely audible over the rain. Sam can just imagine him rolling over and refusing to get up. 

“Come on man,” Sam says. “We are not going to wimp out on this trip because of a little bad weather.” Sam hates the rain, but this weekend is about spending time with his eight year old son Liam. If he gets to give Bucky a hard time along the way, well that’s just a bonus. 

“Nope,” Bucky says. “I live here now. This tent is my home, and I’m never going to leave.” 

Of course, Bucky is in a roomy four-person tent by himself, so he isn’t as motivated to get up as Sam is in his own leaky two-person tent. As much as Sam is loath to admit it, Bucky is a good scoutmaster—firm when he needs to be and gentle the rest of the time. The kids love him. But he can also be lazy as fuck in the mornings. 

“You’ll have to pee eventually,” Sam teases. 

Bucky must have admitted defeat, because Sam could hear the sounds of him unzipping his bag and rustling around in his tent. 

“Steve’ll do it,” Bucky grumps. “He’s probably up and running and making coffee and all that.” Steve is sleeping on the other side of the kids in an ultralight one man bivvy, because of course he is. Steve is Sam’s best friend, but definitely a little extra. 

Sam wriggles out of his sleeping bag and pulls on his waterproof jacket. “If he has coffee, I will marry that man.” 

Bucky grunts, which: rude. “Peggy would kill you if you tried.” 

Yeah, that was fair. Steve is fun, energetic, too straight-laced at times, and definitely Sam’s dream man, but he’s already taken, unlike Sam and Bucky. They are the single dad club, and it helps to have someone else to commiserate with about how hard it is to do this all alone. 

“I’m going for it,” Sam says, crawling out of his tent. He wrinkles his nose as the wet rainfly drips water down his neck. 

Sam and Liam had originally been part of another Boy Scout troop, where they met Steve and his son Stevie junior. Sam got tired of Liam being the only black boy scout, and he and Steve started their own more representative troop. Now, Sam was proud to say their troop looked like the brochure cover of a small liberal arts college. And when Stevie Jr transitioned to Sarah (with full parental support), Sam and Steve opened the troop to all genders. That was when Bucky and his daughter Natasha joined. They weren’t affiliated with the Boy Scouts of America anymore, but that suited them just fine. 

Sure enough, Steve is already up and brewing coffee under the large tarp they had strung up over their kitchen supplies. A few of the kids were up, including Liam. 

“Hey baby boy,” Sam says as he kisses the top of his son’s head. 

Liam wriggles away. “Dad,” he whines, “not in front of everybody.” Yeah. This stage is great for Sam’s ego. 

“Hey,” Bucky says as he walks under the tarp. His long brown hair is sticking up in places, and if Sam didn’t hate the guy, he’d say it was adorable. “You be nice to your father. I’m the only one allowed to be mean to him.” 

Liam rolls his eyes dramatically, tipping his head back for good measure, but he still runs forward and gives Bucky a good morning hug. Bucky smiles up at Sam like it’s a good thing that Liam wants a hug, Liam who sometimes won’t even fist bump Sam in public. 

It never fails to make his blood boil that Liam likes Bucky more than him. Sure, Sam knows that ultimately his son loves him the most, but it irks him that Liam seemed to have more fun with Bucky. The whole point of joining a scouting group had been for father-son bonding. 

Part of it was how messy Sam’s divorce had been. He and Liam’s mother, Allie, had been in the service together. Their romance burned fast and hot and just as it was running its course, they found out Allie was pregnant. Sam discharged as quickly as he could so they wouldn’t have to leave Liam with his grandparents if both he and Allie were deployed overseas in separate locations. 

Allie had been the fun parent, too. She’d come home from deployment, and Liam wanted to be by her every second. At first, it warmed his heart to see Allie scoop Liam up and spin him around or play games with him in the living room. But gradually she seemed to become less interested in him, and Liam clung harder as she began to pull away. 

The throwdown had been messy. Sam said things that floated in the air between them, things he wished he could snatch back. About how Allie wasn’t a good mother and didn’t care about her son. The devastated look on her face was enough to haunt Sam with shame for months. She tearfully admitted that she hadn’t wanted to be a mother, hadn’t even known it until she held Liam in her arms and felt fear instead of love. 

Then she left and never came back and sent him divorce paperwork in the mail. Sam couldn’t help feeling like that was partly his fault. Now he knows that she was likely depressed, but at the time he had been trying too hard to keep his own head above water to get it. 

Liam hadn’t understood. She’d return his phone calls every so often, but stopped visiting. Sam was ready to beg forgiveness, to admit how cruel his words had been, to eke out some kind of friendship for Liam’s sake, but then she was killed in action—Sam hadn’t even known she was in an active military zone—and any chance of repair the three of them had was lost. 

Bucky and Liam descend on Sam, tickling and breaking him from his depressing thoughts. 

“Stop!” Sam cries. But Bucky has a grip with his damned fancy metal prosthetic and holds him in place. Sam hams it up for the delighted grin on Liam’s face, but he gets in two good elbows to Bucky’s stomach as payback for the tickles. 

“Now children,” Steve says dryly. “We are sharing this campground with other people.” 

Bucky drops Sam unceremoniously and looks around. “Steve, it’s raining, and there’s no one here about except teenagers that think we don’t know they’re—” 

Steve clears his throat pointedly; it’s his dad move. Bucky grumbles but walks over and loops his arm around Steve’s waist for a good morning hug. Steve squeezes him tight like he does every morning. They’ve been friends since they were kids, and even served in the army together, although neither of them talks about that part much. 

Any of the kids that want hugs get them in the morning, but Bucky has only offered, never pressured. Sam suspects he does it so Natasha won’t feel singled out by her morning hug—that girl needs more comfort than anyone—but the kids have taken to it and most of them hugged Bucky freely. 

“A little bad weather never hurt anyone,” Steve says primly. 

“As I recall,” Bucky says. Sam nopes right out of listening to another boring story about how young Steve Rogers was sick all the time and blah blah blah stubborn, getting in fights blah blah blah. If he isn’t going to get in the man’s pants, Sam isn’t going to listen to boring stories about him for the umpteenth time. 

“Where are the girls?” Sam says, interrupting Bucky. 

“Still in our tent,” Liam says. He’s putting out silverware and plates without being asked to do so, and Sam appreciates that he just jumps in to help like that. Liam is intuitive like that, always paying attention to the people around him. He’s also sensitive in a way that Sam doesn’t quite understand, quick to tears like he carries other people’s suffering in his little heart. 

Steve sighs. “They told me in no uncertain terms _not_ to disturb them.” 

Bucky and Sam share a look. Steve might run the scout camp, but Peggy and Sarah run everything else. The three of them seem happy with the arrangement. 

“I’ll start breakfast,” Sam says magnanimously. “Bucky, go wake them up.” 

“Why do I gotta be the one?” Bucky grouses, but he’s already walking that way. 

“Because me and Steve are sick of you being everyone’s favorite.” 

Bucky tromps off, and Sam feels a satisfied smirk sneak onto his face when some rain goes down the back of Bucky’s jacket. Steve clears his throat again, a quick reminder that the kids are watching. Whatever, he and Bucky tease one another mercilessly. The kids are used to it. 

Sam sets to frying the bacon and making toast. He assigns tasks to the kids: Liam cuts up fruit and Dan sets up a cleaning station. They are a little light on numbers this weekend, some scouts hadn’t wanted to brave the rain. 

More kids filter in, bleary-eyed and grumpy, likely only up because of their love for Bucky. It’s fine. He can’t let his jealousy show, or Steve will remind him that being a parent isn’t about being popular. 

Natasha and Sarah stride in, looking perfectly put together despite having spent a night crammed with Liam in a tent. It looks like they braided one another’s hair to match. In her relationship with her father, Natasha is the opposite of Sam’s son. She loves Bucky fiercely and isn’t so sure about any other adults. Bucky is a social worker and adopted Natasha from some kind of unfortunate situation, he’d never told Sam the details. Natasha is bright, quiet with a hard demeanor, but Sarah and Liam can get her to share her rare smiles. 

“Hey Red,” Sam calls out to her. “Help me break some eggs.” 

“I’m vegan,” Natasha says, and Sam has to hide his laugh, because she thinks she’s getting away with it. 

“Uh-huh,” Sam says. “I saw you eat two hots dog last night. Now get cracking.” 

Natasha and Sarah giggle, but she joins him in the kitchen area. Bucky returns to the tarp with the last stragglers looking as sad as a wet dog after a bath. Upon seeing Natasha working alongside Sam, his whole countenance brightens. He’s always so proud of her for every little step. Sam turns away, unable to handle that much joy in the morning. 

Breakfast is a boisterous affair once the kids finally got moving. The shout over one another and steal slices of each other’s bacon. Even Steve’s “I’m disappointed in you” face doesn’t work on them. Sarah and Liam sit on both sides of Natasha and get things for her when she whispers in their ears to ask for them. Sam is hoping she’ll jump into the fray one of these days, but Bucky says loud noises are overwhelming for her and is happy that she’s sitting with the group. 

Bucky is pretty, Sam has to admit. Even more so when he’s laughing with kids and being silly. But there’s a thinness to his cheeks that worries Sam. He slips an extra piece of bacon onto Bucky’s plate just in case. Bucky doesn’t notice, but Natasha does, and the corner of her lips quirks up. 

“How’d everybody sleep?” Steve asks, beaming down at their little faces. 

“I slept like a baby,” Bucky says, his standard answer. 

Sarah crosses her tiny little arms and huffs. Apparently, she acts so much like Steve did when he was a kid, Bucky can’t help letting her get away with everything out of fondness. “Dan snores. We could hear him over the rain.” 

“Do not,” Dan says. 

“Do too!” 

Bucky cuts in smoothly. “It was probably the bears snoring.” 

The kids all blink at him. They are too old to believe him completely, but still young enough to wonder. 

“Buck,” Steve says. 

“All right, all right.” Bucky leans forward and whispers. “It was Sam. You should have heard him up close.” He lays his head on the table and pretends to snore loudly, while the kids descend into giggles. 

“Hey!” Sam protests. He doesn’t really mind, but the kids like the show. 

“My bad,” Bucky says, face all faux-apology. “It was me.” He turns to the kids and whispers, “No, it wasn’t.” 

Once they finish eating, Bucky puts his hands up and says, “Who’s excited about our hike today?” 

The kids cheer, holding their greasy fingers aloft. He’s such a ham, and Sam… doesn’t hate it. 

“I said, who’s excited about this hike today?!” 

The kids scream, and Bucky points at one of them. “Good! Jubilo, you have to carry me.” 

The kids all laugh, and Jubilo grins and shakes his head. “No!” 

Bucky appears to be winding up for another cheer when Steve interrupts him. “Buck, there _are_ other people here.” 

Okay, so sometimes Steve is a stick in the mud, but he isn’t technically wrong. Sam selects three kids to help with dishes, the stragglers who hadn’t helped cook, and sends the others to brush their teeth and change into hiking clothes. 

“Now Miss Sarah,” Sam says at the cleaning station, “I know you’re not going to tell me this dish is clean.” Sam holds up a plate still shining from bacon grease. 

Sarah tilts her head, no doubt trying to project innocence. “Maybe I need you to show me how to do it, Mr. Wilson.” 

Sam bites back a laugh. Kids are so cute when they’re trying to be crafty. She and Natasha must share notes. “Not gonna work on me, Miss Thing. Wash it again, or I’ll tell your mom you’re using her spy techniques to get out of doing dishes.” 

“Mom’s not a spy,” Sarah protests, but she takes the plate and scrubs it, anyway. “She’s a covert government agent. There’s a difference.” 

“As long as you keep working, you can tell me all about it.” 

The rain lets up, but it’s still dribbling enough that they’ll all be soaked soon. Sam puts on a brave face for their hike, but Bucky seems to be genuinely enjoying it. Several times, he and Liam race ahead and jump in big puddles and then run back to the group mud-covered and cheering. It’s good seeing Liam so lost in the joy of it, even if Sam isn’t part of it. 

“You could join them,” Steve whispers. 

“Nah,” Sam says. “It wouldn’t be fun once dad got involved.” 

Steve looks unconvinced, but he doesn’t press. 

He and Steve bring up the rear while Bucky stays with the kids in front. It’s something about Steve wanting to make sure slower kids feel included since he had asthma as a child and couldn’t keep up. The details might be a little off, Sam realizes, but all the pipsqueak Steve stories run together. 

They chat companionably during the hike, and Sam’s mood improves once the rain finally tapers off. The scenery is beautiful, too. Thick oak trees, glistening with rainwater, beside the slow-flowing stream. 

Sam and Steve talk while they hike. Getting to spend time with Steve is one of his favorite things about leading the troop together. A scream cuts off their peaceful conversation, and Steve takes off like a rocket with Sam hot on his heels. As they come around the bend, Sam sees Sarah on the ground hunched over and Bucky restraining one of the teenagers from the campground. Natasha and Liam stand with clenched fists between Sarah and the other three teenagers. 

Steve falls heavily on his knees in front of his daughter, and she curls up to reveal a small turtle completely hidden in its shell. 

“They were hurting it,” Sarah says, face all fierce determination. Steve reaches for her, making a hurt little noise when he sees she’s bleeding from a cut on her cheek and the bruising on her eye where she’s been punched. 

“I didn’t do anything,” the boy restrained by Bucky says. “She started yelling and tackled me.” 

Sam nods at Sarah’s cheek and says, “That doesn’t look like nothing.” And the boy must finally be calm enough to do the mental calculation that he and his friends don’t stand a chance against three grown muscular men. 

“I have a right to defend myself,” he says weakly. “She can’t just punch people.” Bucky releases his hold, but stays close enough to jump in if need be. 

“Why don’t y’all run along, and we’ll call it even?” Sam says, warning implied. Truthfully, he’d like to arrest the teenagers, but if Sarah attacked first things will get a little muddy. The teenagers tromp off, casting quick furtive glances at Sam and Bucky. 

Sam pulls out his first aid kit and looks at Sarah’s cheek thankful his pararescue training comes in handy sometimes. The cut on Sarah’s cheek is shallow, likely scratched on a rock from where she’d fallen after being punched, but some dirt and gravel are embedded in her cheek. He sets about debriding the area. 

Bucky crouches down beside Natasha, and she hides her face in his chest. Liam grabs ahold, too, and cries quietly into Bucky’s shoulder. Such a sweet boy, his son, so sensitive that Sam worries about him living on that raw edge of feelings, but he’s proud of Liam’s gentle heart. 

Sarah draws in a quick breath when the disinfectant stings, and Liam and Natasha immediately let go of Bucky and grab ahold of her. There is some gravel in the heel of her hand, but Sam makes quick work of it. 

Steve’s face is hard. He’s obviously still fuming, and Sarah is studiously avoiding his gaze, no doubt worrying she’ll be in trouble. 

Bucky softens the moment, reaches down and run a hand through Sarah’s wet, blond hair. “Did I ever tell you about the time your dad took on three big kids because they were kicking a dog?” 

Sarah’s shoulders release some tension Sam hadn’t realized she was holding. “Yes,” she whispers. 

“You’re so much like him. I just- I’m proud of you, kiddo.” 

It’s enough to get Sarah to look up at Steve. Whatever lecture Steve was preparing is gone just like that, and Sarah crawls into her father’s arms and lets him hold her. They stay like that for a minute, all the kids crowded around. Sam inspects Liam and Natasha for injuries. They’ll both have some bruises, but it looks like Sarah took the worst of it. 

Finally, Steve and Sarah stand up. “Let’s head back to camp,” he says. 

Sam catches him with a hand on his shoulder. “Why don’t you ask her what she wants to do,” Sam says quietly. 

They all look at Sarah who is deep in thought. “We could find a new home for Shelton?” 

Sam and Steve share a confused look, but Bucky bursts out into laughter and lifts Sarah up into the air so quickly she squeaks and grins at him. 

Sam catches on, but Steve still looks confused. Whatever. He’s the prettiest of them but not always the smartest. “As long as that turtle doesn’t come back to camp, I’m fine with it.” 

They spend the next hour looking for the perfect place for a turtle to live, while Sarah imperiously gives instructions to the other scouts about the grass and water and insects turtles like. Sam is ninety-nine percent sure she’s making it up on the spot, but he doesn’t care. The kids are loving it, when Liam finds the perfect spot, Sarah looks at him like he hung the moon. 

—

On the hike back, Sam catches up with Liam. “Hey,” Sam says, “I know that was scary, but I’m proud of you for standing up for your friend like that. You did good.” 

Liam doesn’t look at him but grabs Sam’s hand and sniffles. “I don’t like people being hurt.” 

Sam squeezes his hand, a surge of love for his tender-hearted son so strong he can barely stand it. “I like that about you.” 

Liam glances up now, a shy smile on his face. He stops Sam right there on the trail and hugs him, and all of Sam’s worries about being the fun parent disappear. It doesn’t matter when he gets to have moments like this. 

He’s riding high on that moment when he approaches Bucky on their hike back. Steve and Sarah are at the front, and he and Bucky bring up the back. 

“You all right?” Sam says. “Must have been intense to see that.” 

Bucky chuckles, a low, worn-out sound that Sam’s never heard from him before. It feels wrong. Bucky is jokes and sunshine and making shy kids smile. 

“You handled it well,” Sam says. He bumps Bucky’s shoulders. “Not that I would expect anything less from Mr. Perfect.” 

Bucky’s head whips up, and he stops in the middle of the trail. “What?” There’s something in his eyes that edges on hurt, like he thinks Sam is making fun of him. 

This is why Sam doesn’t talk about feelings. It’s messy, things get turned around, and he hurts people without meaning to. 

“I’m serious,” Sam says. “You’re super dad, and all the kids love you… even my kid likes you more than me.” 

To his credit, Bucky doesn’t immediately jump in with reassurance. His eyes soften, and he bumps his shoulder against Sam’s, returning the gesture. “It’s hard, even though his mom didn’t want custody, she’s not around to be mad at. You are. He loves you, he’s just figuring things out.” 

It makes sense, too much sense, and it gives him hope that one day things will smooth out with Liam, and they’ll find their peace together. “What makes you so sure?” 

“Hello?” Bucky says, his voice teasing, “social worker. And…” he shrugs, but the expression isn’t casual. “It happens with Natasha sometimes.” 

“No way. She adores you.” 

“Yeah, but… I’m the reason she’s away from her parents and that whole mess, and that’s a good thing. But she still misses them even though they are assholes.” 

Sam wants to reach out and hold Bucky’s hand or pull him into a hug. He settles for saying, “I’m glad she has you.” He can feel the happiness Bucky is radiating from that comment without even looking at him. 

Bucky, god bless him, doesn’t make Sam’s moment of affection awkward. He makes sure they are out of earshot of the kids when he continues, “I wanted to give her something I didn’t have. My dad, well, he was an ass. Then he kicked me out when I was seventeen when he caught me with my boyfriend… It’s why I joined the service right away. Lived with Steve until I joined. It was good until the POW thing, and then—” 

“The POW thing?” Sam groans. “Why didn’t you tell me?” 

Bucky stops on the trail again holding deadly still. “I figured Steve told you. He and Peggy were the ones who rescued me, you didn’t know?” 

Sam smacks his hand to his forehead dramatically. “Oh man, I’ve been such a jerk to you because I thought you were perfect.” 

“Nope,” Bucky says, relaxing now that he knows Sam isn’t mad. “I’ve got PTSD on top of PTSD. All kinds a fucked up.” 

Sam elbows him in the stomach. “Hey, don’t say that about my friend.” 

Bucky laughs. “Nah. I’ve done tons of therapy. Mental illness… it’s not good or bad, to me. It’s just part of who I am.” 

Of course. Of fucking course, Bucky would be perfect even when talking about PTSD. “Do I have to be nice to you now?” 

“Aw, Sammy, you’re being nice to me right now.” 

“Do NOT call me Sammy.” 

—

Once they get back to the campground, a ranger approaches them. He’s a friendly-looking man but Sam can tell he’s bracing to tell them bad news. Sam and Steve stop to talk to him, while Bucky and the kids return to camp.

“Gentlemen,” the Ranger says, “I caught some youths messing around with your campsite. I was able to stop them before they destroyed everything but—” 

“They broke the tent!” Sarah yells. 

The ranger explains that the teenagers stole some of their food and destroyed part of their camp. He looks sorry, but there’s nothing he can do, so Sam thanks him, and he and Steve head over to their campsite. 

The tent is a bright orange mess of torn fabric. It looks like the teenagers threw rocks on it and stomped it into the ground. 

Sam surveys the damage, knocking the dirt off and feeling around for the poles. They have plenty of duct tape and a repair kit, but it may not be enough. “Looks like the poles are broken in two places,” he says grimly. “Don’t think we’ll be able to salvage it this trip.” 

Liam bites his lip, getting teary-eyed all over again. “Do we have to go home?” 

“Of course not,” Sam says, standing up and dusting off his knees. “You’ll sleep with me, Natasha and Sarah can fit in Bucky’s tent.” 

“No,” Bucky blurts out. He shoots Sam a quick apologetic look before addressing the kids. “This is you guys’ chance to be together without parents looking over your shoulder. We’ll just… We’ll move my tent over so you all can sleep there, and I’ll sleep in the car.” 

Sam starts to protest, but Nat’s small smile stills his tongue. She needs this—time with kids her age—and damned if Sam will deny her that. Still, he can gripe a little. “You’ll never sleep in there,” Sam says. “You can bunk with me.” 

“Yeah,” Sarah says ready to seal the deal before anyone changed their minds. “Sounds good! We’ll bring over the tent.” 

The kids take off, Natasha and Liam following Sarah’s instructions as they drag Bucky’s freestanding tent over to the kid area and cram Bucky’s sleeping bag into Sam’s tent. 

“Those three will run the world or destroy it,” Sam says, as he watches them scurry back and forth. 

Steve nods. “Sarah’s Peggy’s daughter, always three steps ahead.” 

Bucky is tellingly quiet until the kids are out of earshot. “You sure about me staying with you? I don’t mind the car. We can tell the kids it was my idea.” 

Sam shrugs. He doesn’t get why it would be a problem, and he’s not going to make Bucky sleep in the backseat of a car. Bucky’s not the biggest guy, he’s lithe in a way that Sam thinks looks really good, but he’s also nearly six feet tall and the car will be a squeeze. “Yeah. You don’t snore, right?” 

Steve and Bucky share a look that Sam can’t quite figure out. 

“I could sleep with Sam, and you could take the bivvy,” Steve offers. 

“Too small,” Bucky says. Steve nods like that made sense, despite Steve being the biggest of them. 

“I guess it’s decided then,” Bucky says weakly. He elbows Sam. “Hey, roomie.” 

——

That night, Bucky and Liam set to making a big campfire, laughing and high five-ing when the little flame bursts to light. Sam thinks he gets it now: Bucky’s tender-hearted like Liam. And his son needs role models who understand what it’s like to be like that, to feel everything and be unable to hide it. Bucky helps him not feel embarrassed about being sensitive. 

When Bucky looks up at him, Sam can’t help smiling back fondly. Bucky’s cheeks pink up adorably, and he ducks his head. Something’s happening that Sam can’t quite put his finger on, something that could be pretty damn great. 

The kids sing around the fire, led by Steve who is tone-deaf but enthusiastic. Natasha burns her marshmallow, and, when she waves it around to put out the fire, she launches the flaming mass behind her on accident. Sarah puts it out in a heartbeat, even offers Natasha a piece of chocolate to make her feel better. It makes Sam wonder if what he’s been calling friendship between the two of them might be the beginnings of puppy love. 

The day has been filled with excitement, and the kids head off to bed fairly early. Sam and Bucky stay up together as the fire dies out. Bucky’s anxious in a way that Sam doesn’t normally see, picking at a thumbnail until Sam covers up the fire and suggests they go to bed. 

Sam’s tent is diamond-shaped, wider along where their shoulders will go, and narrower down by their feet. It’s never been exactly roomy, and he and Bucky will have to be creative to make it work. As they crawl in, Sam catches an elbow to the ribs in a way he’s 90% certain is an accident, but he elbows Bucky back just to be safe. 

Bucky’s quiet as they get settled. Sam helps him relax in the way he best knows how. “How is your skinny ass taking up so much room?” he says, squirming in his sleeping bag. 

Bucky huffs, trying and failing to wriggle out of the way. “It’s your giant thighs that are causing this mess.” 

“Can’t have a tree without a trunk,” Sam says, unrepentant. 

“Yeah, yeah,” Bucky says. “Thick thighs save lives and all that.” 

“And don’t you forget it.” 

“Trust me, I can’t.” 

Sam’s not entirely sure what that means, but he has a good idea. If Bucky were a little more relaxed, Sam might tease him about checking out his thighs, but he lets the matter rest. They lay in silence for a while, and just when Sam is about to fall asleep, Bucky shifts in his sleeping bag and whimpers.

“Bucky?” 

“3-2-5-5-7-0-3-8,” Bucky mumbles. “Sergeant James Barnes. 3-2-5-5-7-0-3-8.”

Oh fuck. That’s not good. Bucky thrashes, and Sam knows if he gets much louder, he’ll wake up the kids. 

“Bucky,” Sam whispers, careful not to touch him. “It’s Sam. You’re safe. You’re camping with me. Everything’s okay.” 

Slowly the thrashing slows, and Bucky awakes with a start. “Jesus,” he flops a hand on his face. “I didn’t hit you, did I?” 

“No, man. You were fine.” 

“Dad?” Natasha says from outside the tent. 

Holy hell, Sam had not heard her approach. “Your kid is a ninja,” he whispers. 

Bucky runs a hand down his face. “Everything’s okay, baby. You want a hug?” Bucky unzips the rain fly and the side of the tent, and Natasha crawls in and sits on Bucky’s lap. The tent is really not big enough for this, and Sam has to squish against the mesh to make room. He turns on his heap lamp so they can see one another. 

“Are you all right?” Natasha says, voice small. 

Bucky rubs her back in slow strokes. “Yeah, honey. Sam helped.” 

This seems to appease her, and she wriggles closer. “You’re sweaty.” 

Now that there is light in the tent, Sam sees the sweat on Bucky’s brow, the dampness of his hair. 

“Would you believe I dumped water on him?” Sam asks. 

Natasha shakes her head against Bucky’s chest. 

“Didn’t think so,” Sam says. 

Bucky rests his cheek against Natasha’s hair. “Can’t get anything by you. You’re going to be a bigwig like Aunt Peggy someday.” 

Nat doesn’t seem to be in the mood to tease and yawns in Bucky’s arm. They sit there quietly until Natasha falls asleep. 

“I can take the car if you want to stay with her,” Sam says. 

“Nah,” Bucky replies. “She needs to be with her friends, and… I don’t want her to get used to taking care of me.” 

Sam squeezes Bucky’s shoulder. “You’re doing great with her. This stuff just happens.” 

Bucky sounds bone-deep tired when he says, “I’ll carry her back to the tent.” 

“I’ll help.” 

It takes some jostling and Nat wakes up along the way, but eventually, Bucky and Sam get her settled into bed. 

“Dad?” Liam says, voice muzzy with sleep. 

“Don’t worry, Liam. I’ll see you in the morning.” 

They are quiet on the way back to the tent and lay down facing one another. Sam knows they could just ignore the situation, but he doesn’t think Bucky wants or needs that. He turns on the headlamp and shines it at Bucky. “I thought you said you slept like a baby.” 

Bucky squints through the bright light at Sam. “Babies wake up and cry every four hours.” 

Sam muffles a laugh in the back of his hand. “That is some morbid shit there.” 

Bucky grins like they are sharing a secret. “Whatever. You get it.” He rolls onto his back, taking up entirely too much room in the tent, but Sam is magnanimous this once. Bucky’s grinning like a loon, and Sam wants to trace the laughter on his lips. “Is this a bad time to admit I have a crush on you?” 

“Yeah, it is! I’m still feeling guilty about being a jerk. Ask me again at the end of the weekend.”

“Deal,” Bucky says. 

Sam clicks off his headlamp. “I’ll say yes,” he adds, just to be clear. “So don’t forget.” Sam rolls away from Bucky to hide his own grin. “And wipe that smile off your face.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fluffy epilogue

“Barnes, you better not be eating all the pepperonis off the pizza,” Sam calls out. 

Natasha and Liam make a sing-song oohing noise. 

“Someone’s in trouble,” Liam says. 

“What d’ya mean?” Bucky says, back still to them. 

Liam giggles. “He only calls you Barnes when you’re in trouble.” 

Bucky turns around, his shiny lips and greasy fingers telling the truth of the story. “All right, all right.” He rinses his fingers in the sink. “But he should say Wilson now, I’m not a Barnes anymore.” 

Sam rolls his eyes to fight the spread of warmth in his heart. “Bucky Barnes-Wilson. You’re still a Barnes.” 

“Actually,” Bucky puts an arm around Natasha and pulls her close. “We were thinking Wilson would be better. Since the Barnes aren’t family to us, and you and Liam—” Bucky cuts off when Sam tears up. They’d carved out a little life for the four of them and damn if Sam wasn’t proud of it. 

“Baby?” Bucky says worriedly. “I should have talked to you about it first. I’m sorry.” 

“I love it,” Sam says wetly. He squishes Natasha and Bucky into a hug. “Liam and I would love to have two more Wilsons.” 

“Speak for yourself,” Liam says, smiling like a goof. 

“Boy, get into this hug,” Sam says. “You know you’re happy about this.” 

Liam jumps in and squeezes until Natasha makes a squeaking noise, and they all release each other. 

“Okay,” Sam says, wiping his eyes. “What’s on the docket for movie night?” 

Bucky and Liam share a sly smile. “The Force Awakens,” Liam says. 

“Not again!” Sam groans. “That’s the third time in six months. Back me up, Tash.” 

Natasha looks shrewdly at the three of them. “Veto.” 

“Heck yeah!” Sam holds out a hand, and Natasha gives him a high five. “Let the people with good taste in the family choose.” 

“Memento,” Natasha says decisively. 

“Nope,” Sam says. How had she even heard about that movie? “Too old for you, and too smart for your dad. How about—” 

“Toy Story 2?” Bucky cuts in. Natasha’s withering look could level lesser men, but Bucky just grins at her until she smiles back. 

They all fall to squabbling eventually settling on, of course, The Force Awakens. Bucky and Liam cackle together in victory, leaning against each other, and it is almost enough to lessen the burn of losing in his own home. Almost. Who is he kidding? He’d move heaven and earth to make his family happy and watching Star Wars again is a small sacrifice. Natasha looks pleased, too, and Sam wonders if she’d planned things to go this way. She’s a sweet kid, but she tries to hide it. 

They settle onto the couch with Bucky snuggled right up next to Sam. The kids insist they are too big for couch cuddling but always migrate over to sit beside them before the movie ends. All in all, itis pretty damn perfect, and Sam couldn’t ask for more. 

**Author's Note:**

> I forgot to add the fluffy epilogue to the end, so I’ll post it as a second chapter tomorrow.


End file.
